Cover At Intheory Design, co-founders Ellba Tang and Ryan Linardy create deeply personal spaces rooted in the values and rituals of their clients
At Intheory Design, co-founders Ellba Tang and Ryan Linardy create deeply personal spaces rooted in the values and rituals of their clients
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Intheory Design approaches spatial design as a poetic exercise of restraint and context, to empathise with occupants of a space and bring them ease
Behind Singapore-based boutique interior design studio Intheory Design is a duo focused on purposefully creating interiors from a more grounded perspective, as tangible forms of occupants’ values and rituals. Guided by their background in spatial design and their philosophy of “design meets living”, Ellba Tang and Ryan Linardy set out to move away from what they describe as the “copy-paste nature of interiors”. They strive instead to build environments that are, in their words, “honest, yours, and eco-conscious.”
In case you missed it: Home tour: A serene urban sanctuary by Intheory Design
Above InTheory Design co-founders Ellba Tang and Ryan Linardy
InTheory Design co-founders Ellba Tang and Ryan Linardy
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Reflecting the balance between aspirational and lived reality, their use of materiality explores the tension between rawness and refinement. “It’s not about how much we can put into a room, but how we can use simple elements in unique ways,” they explain. Materiality is viewed as a means through which a space’s occupants allow the space to showcase who they are as people. This creates a uniquely tailored version of luxury that is not defined by price or label, but by feeling. “It's having a home tailored so specifically to your rituals that it becomes your own luxury, not just a showpiece,” Tang and Linardy say.
2025 marked a landmark year for the duo as they swept the Interior Design Excellence Awards, organised by Interior Design Confederation Singapore, with a bountiful haul. The studio claimed the coveted title of Emerging ID Firm of the Year—a testament to their meteoric rise—before doubling down with gold for Best Workplace Design. They rounded out a dazzling night with one silver and three bronze in Best Residential Design, leaving little doubt that InTheory Design has firmly arrived.
A familiar transit
The dark yet inviting entryway of the home
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For a couple who both work for an airline and live most of their life in transit, physically apart from each other, they hope for their home to be inviting yet grounding. Memories of a trip to Japan became the muse behind making tangible the calmness and peace they felt during it. “Their faces would light up whenever one of them made a reference to it,” Tang and Linardy share. Their 1,205 sq ft three-bedroom flat is a love letter to how they met and continue to move through the world.
Tang and Linardy translated this into dark wood tones, warm lighting and tactile finishes—an echo of the stillness of a quiet evening abroad. Limewashed walls contrast against the darker fixtures, lightening the tonal palette to retain balance. “We decided early on that the solution was not to avoid darkness, but to embrace it,” they elaborate on selecting matte carpentry finishes and honed marble surfaces that reduce glare and hide wear.
A peek into the kitchen from the living room and coffee station
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A matching pair of repurposed luggages as living room side tables nod to the couple's origin story. “We didn’t want to tuck the luggage away. They’re part of us,” the couple say. Hand-textured wave patterns inspired by Hokusai’s The Great Wave Off Kanagawa stretch across the hallway, coffee bar, and kitchen—waves always in motion, yet always returning to shore. “This home is not about grandeur or perfection, but about familiarity—the kind of space that waits patiently for its owners to return,” Tang and Linardy say.
A quiet respite
Light woods add warmth, consistent finishes keep things cohesive, and soft whites and beiges make the home easy to live in
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It began with a feeling. For parents with two young daughters and demanding careers, home needed to be contrary to the hecticness of everyday life. “We wanted a place where the noise drops the moment you walk in,” they share. Before parenthood, spontaneous trips were how the couple slowed down. That same sense of ease became the anchor for designing their home. Japandi felt right, not as a strict style but as an approach: “Nothing loud, nothing fussy. Just spaces that feel good to be in.” With light woods, sandy tones, and soft whites, the 2,292 sq ft four-bedroom home feels open and relaxed—“like a home that’s always on holiday.”
The bedroom has a similarly light and neutral colour palette
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The family gathers in the living room to wind down together. Rather than separating activities, the children’s art corner sits within the same space. “They can paint and make a mess, and we’re still right there,” the parents share—close enough to observe, while everyday conversations unfold naturally around them.
With daily routines shaping the design decisions, storage was configured to work quietly in the background, suited to both a naturally organised parent and a more relaxed one. “Life doesn’t stop just because the house looks nice,” they note. Light woods, soft whites, and beiges carry a consistent visual language across the home, while soft drapes, wooden slats, and curved edges bring a cosy yet polished touch throughout. It’s a home that keeps up when it needs to, and slows down when it can.
Design meets living
The studio’s core is a mezzanine anchored by a diagonally positioned Patagonia stone island
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“If our space is to embody who we are as designers, what should it feel like?” This is the question Tang and Linardy ask themselves when conceptualising their design studio. Their desire is to craft a calm, honest, and eco-conscious space that is homey, borne out of sincerity rather than spectacle.
If surfaces speak, the threshold one steps through would tell the story of their embracing oft-overlooked materials. Architecturally arranged marble fragments, salvaged from trade waste bins, are framed by a reclaimed brick wall.
Above A tactile entrance made from salvaged marble and reclaimed brick sets the tone
Above Many visitors pause here, running their hands across the textured surfaces
A tactile entrance made from salvaged marble and reclaimed brick sets the tone
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Wherever possible, eco-friendly and responsibly sourced materials were chosen
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The studio’s core is a mezzanine anchored by a diagonally positioned Patagonia stone island functioning as a worktable, gathering spot, and sculptural centrepiece. Overhead, suspended pendants hover, emitting a warm gentle glow reflecting off the black-painted ceiling.
The consultation zone, with rounded lighting features and cocoon-like panelling, invites clients to feel comfortable enough to engage in dialogue. Adjacent to it, the lounge clad in contrasting lighter tones offers a space for pause between conversations.
A stroll through the studio offers a quiet, textural and layered experience. Moody without heaviness, immersive without overwhelm, every detail represents Tang and Linardy’s commitment to character and conscience. “Our studio is both a workplace and a manifesto. It teaches us to design with responsibility,” they say.
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